Hochelaga, Terre des âmes was not a white whale on the level of Goin' Down the Road. Waiting for the film to cross the border in some form had been frustrating but mostly to satisfy the streak of seeing the Best Foreign Language Film entry for the Oscars. After seeing the film and Chien de Garde, the streak goes back to 2005.
The premise is that the history of Quebec is tied to a spot around the 30-yard line at Percival Molson Stadium, home for the McGill Redmen and CFL Montréal Alouettes.
In a game with McGill hosting Bishop's Gaiters from nearby Sherbrooke, a massive sinkhole opens up and swallows the Redmen's kick returner.
The film goes back and forth from ancient Quebec stories to Mohawk archaeologist Baptiste Asigny working on his thesis by investigating remains from the sinkhole in the football stadium. We hear the Asigny name in a conversation between 2 indigenous men in a faraway time.
François Girard wrote and directed Hochelaga, Land of Souls. Girard has a fine reputation, including Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould and The Red Violin.
The modern-day shots are presented with as little fanfare as possible. They recite the dialogue but you aren't excited about anything that happens in the modern time. The girlfriend of the deceased player is visible on screen but not in dialogue. Samian, who is more musician than actor, plays Asigny with as much blandness as poutine without cheese, gravy, and the cooking of the fries.
As someone who doesn't think history is boring, Girard goes out of his way to make the Quebec history pretty boring. Why were these stories chosen? We do see a story about Jacques Cartier but there isn't much there.
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I've seen Quebec historical stories such as Chaise Galerie (Wild Run) and Louis Cyr, so I know Quebec history can be told in interesting ways. Hochelaga, Terre des âmes isn't one of those films.
We do see a couple of prominent Canadian actresses in small roles. Karelle Tremblay plays a nun in a hospital in one of the historical scenes. Caroline Dhavernas plays a TV news anchor in the modern times. We also hear a sports radio talk show conversation about P.K. Subban.
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If you fast-forward through the modern sequences, you can come up with a decent look at Quebec history that will be in almost as much context as if you watched the whole film. Hochelaga, Terre des âmes is certainly not the worst Quebec film to go before the Academy Awards (Chien de Garde holds that honour) but there are better ways to learn about l'historie du Quebec.
video credit: YouTube/Victoria Film Festival
photo credit: Hochelaga, Land of Souls
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